Trademarks & Domain Names

You can’t escape memes on social media these days, so it’s no surprise to find that corporations are beginning to get in on the act. 

Applications for non-traditional trademarks, such as sounds, smells and motion marks, make up only a small percentage of annual trademark applications in the EU. However, their importance is beginning to grow. 

On 27 September, yet another country deposited its instrument of accession; Malaysia. This means that Malaysia can be designated in an international trademark registration (IR) as of 27 December 2019.

When it comes to celebrity tattoos, the story is always who's got one and where – but what about the artist who created the design? Alastair Rawlence redresses the balance.

The English Premier League revealed this month that it had seized more than 160,000 counterfeit items, worth more than £5 million, in the past year.

A recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU has broadened the options for taking action against online trademark infringement, by giving trademark owners a wider choice of court, as Casper Hemelrijk explains.

Pennsylvania State University (‘Penn State’) has filed suit against Florida-based Sports Beer Brewing Company for trademark infringement over its use of the university’s name, brand and sporting mascot.

An application to register Uncle Sam as a figurative trademark has been refused by the USPTO on the grounds of its iconic character and cultural significance.

Corporate approaches to IP management have varied considerably over the years, driven in part by changes to business structures and practices, as well as to stakeholder understanding of the role and value of intangible assets.

Frequently bloated with unused registrations or starved by gaps in coverage, a thorough audit of your trademark assets could help you to identify ways to streamline and exploit your portfolio, saving you money while also improving the efficiency of your assets.

We all know that a recognisable and trusted brand name is a powerful asset with clear benefits in terms of customer recognition, loyalty and goodwill, reputation and market share. The challenge lies in quantifying and communicating that value.

Commercial success for pharmaceutical companies is highly dependent on the acquisition and enforcement of IP rights. While speed to filing is important in most instances, registering a trademark too early could have a negative impact on validity, as Casper Hemelrijk explains.